Complaints of timeshare scams continued to flood in to the Malta Tourism Authority coming from tourists in 2010, despite updates to the regulations governing the business. There was also an increase in the number of registered complaints involving shady promises and contracts, overshadowing the low number of cases of Outside Promotional Contracts (OPC).

According to the MTA, they’ve pointed out that around 13 penalties in the form of fines were issued to OPCs and timeshare marketing businesses for violating the said rules. Particularly implicated are timeshare contractors doing business in Bugibba, whose shady transactions forced tourists to report complaints to the MTA.

A few English tourists shared their accounts of how someone approached them outside the premises of an exchange bureau in Triq it-Turisti, Bugibba, and started chatting to them about their qualms regarding the hotel in Qawra in which they were currently staying. The OPC then offered the tourists an alternative accommodations spot that includes a gym and indoor swimming pool as well as transportation. The British expatriates were told to pay discounted annual membership fees and were advised against taking notes of the transaction.